“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.” 1 Corinthians 13:4 – 8 (ESV)
God is love. Let’s liken our hearts to a bank and God to the currency. To have anything in the bank you have to make a deposit. But if you have no income, you cannot make a withdrawal. In this case our income is the word of God and our daily experiences with Him. When that income is constant we have an abundance of resources.
How do we get that consistent flow of income?
A great example of someone exhibiting love in the Bible is David. David loved the Lord and he is described as a man after God’s own heart. David’s love for God was evident in his private talks with God, in his allegiance to God, in his desire to please God and in his testimonies. David had a lot of time on his hands as a shepherd and he chose to spend that time talking privately to God. You don’t have a private talk with just anyone; you talk privately with your closest friends and family. That is who God was to David, a close friend and a family member. As a shepherd David understood the role of leader and follower. He watched his sheep every day and saw their utter dependence on him. In the same manner David understood that God was his leader and creator and he followed as His creation. He understood that his intelligence was that of the sheep in comparison to the omniscience of God. He knew his place and surrendered to it. David’s testimony was concrete evidence that God was a living presence in his life. The book of Psalms is like David’s diary cataloguing one-on-one experiences that revealed God’s character and love towards him. These records built his faith and allowed him to be fearless. He was never bolder than when he told King Saul that he would fight Goliath when thousands of men before him feared to do so. When asked how he could do this, David spoke of how God used him to overcome difficulties in the past and knew that God would not forsake him in this. Because David had spent time with God, witnessed God in His fullness and knew his place with God his desire for God was nurtured. Through this passion and desire to please God, David was able to testify of God’s faithfulness, power and love. David was motivated by his desire to please God, God was his target. When you desire something it becomes your target to which all aspects of your life become focused to. That is why during the lowest point of David’s life, when he was sought a counterfeit love from Bathsheba, Nathan brought him back into focus and reminded him of his first love, God.
Regardless of the condition your life is in right now, God wants to abide with you. David is such a great illustration for us because we don’t have to be perfect to have an intimate relationship with God. Here are some things that we can take from David’s story:
1) Your time is coveted. The devil tries to make you so busy that God gets the leftovers. We must make God our target.
2) Know your place. You did not create heaven and earth in seven days, God did. Be the follower, let God lead.
3) Let Him in. In this day and age God is not popular. We know that God is knocking at our hearts, but we treat him like a door-to-door salesman. Open the door and make it your mission to know Him and watch your desire grow.
4) Be about it. Once you know Him you will be on fire to want to talk about Him. His light will shine so bright within you that people won’t help but see it.
To being wise,
Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa
God is love. Let’s liken our hearts to a bank and God to the currency. To have anything in the bank you have to make a deposit. But if you have no income, you cannot make a withdrawal. In this case our income is the word of God and our daily experiences with Him. When that income is constant we have an abundance of resources.
How do we get that consistent flow of income?
A great example of someone exhibiting love in the Bible is David. David loved the Lord and he is described as a man after God’s own heart. David’s love for God was evident in his private talks with God, in his allegiance to God, in his desire to please God and in his testimonies. David had a lot of time on his hands as a shepherd and he chose to spend that time talking privately to God. You don’t have a private talk with just anyone; you talk privately with your closest friends and family. That is who God was to David, a close friend and a family member. As a shepherd David understood the role of leader and follower. He watched his sheep every day and saw their utter dependence on him. In the same manner David understood that God was his leader and creator and he followed as His creation. He understood that his intelligence was that of the sheep in comparison to the omniscience of God. He knew his place and surrendered to it. David’s testimony was concrete evidence that God was a living presence in his life. The book of Psalms is like David’s diary cataloguing one-on-one experiences that revealed God’s character and love towards him. These records built his faith and allowed him to be fearless. He was never bolder than when he told King Saul that he would fight Goliath when thousands of men before him feared to do so. When asked how he could do this, David spoke of how God used him to overcome difficulties in the past and knew that God would not forsake him in this. Because David had spent time with God, witnessed God in His fullness and knew his place with God his desire for God was nurtured. Through this passion and desire to please God, David was able to testify of God’s faithfulness, power and love. David was motivated by his desire to please God, God was his target. When you desire something it becomes your target to which all aspects of your life become focused to. That is why during the lowest point of David’s life, when he was sought a counterfeit love from Bathsheba, Nathan brought him back into focus and reminded him of his first love, God.
Regardless of the condition your life is in right now, God wants to abide with you. David is such a great illustration for us because we don’t have to be perfect to have an intimate relationship with God. Here are some things that we can take from David’s story:
1) Your time is coveted. The devil tries to make you so busy that God gets the leftovers. We must make God our target.
2) Know your place. You did not create heaven and earth in seven days, God did. Be the follower, let God lead.
3) Let Him in. In this day and age God is not popular. We know that God is knocking at our hearts, but we treat him like a door-to-door salesman. Open the door and make it your mission to know Him and watch your desire grow.
4) Be about it. Once you know Him you will be on fire to want to talk about Him. His light will shine so bright within you that people won’t help but see it.
To being wise,
Meredith, Jennifer and Marisa
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